Earlier this week KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote in a note to clients that Apple's rumored wearable device - which was dubbed by the press the iWatch - should come in two sizes, featuring wireless charging and "fashionable" design.
Corroborating the analyst report, a new story has it that the device is indeed coming later this year in two sizes, outfitted with a flexible screen made by LG Display, a company thought to be the sole display supplier for the device...
Production on screens for the 4.7-inch version of Apple's next iPhone could start as early as May, according to a new report from Reuters. Citing supply chain sources, the outlet says that Japan Display and other manufacturers are readying their facilities and could begin churning out panels next month.
Unfortunately, for those looking forward to the oft-rumored 5.5-inch model, it sounds like production issues have forced Apple to delay the handset. Reuters says that manufacturers are running into difficulties with in-cell technology, and the larger displays may not go into production for several months...
Japanese news outlet Nikkei threw its weight behind a popular rumor today, reporting that Apple's next-gen iPhone will come in both 4.7- and 5.5-inch models. The theory that the company is working on two new larger-sized handsets has been reiterated several times over the past 6 months.
Citing sources within Apple's supply chain, Nikkei says that manufacturers have already begun making components for the new smartphones, like fingerprint sensors and chips for liquid-crystal drivers, and Sharp, Japan Display and LG will begin mass-producing their panels as early as April...
It was reported last October that LG Display was close to reaching an agreement with Apple to build tiny OLED (organic light-emitting diode) screens for the rumored iWatch. As the original article by The Korea Herald asserted, LG Display would become the second iWatch display supplier, with Taiwan's RiTDisplay acting as the primary supplier and Japan Display a likely candidate as well.
According to a new report Monday by Seoul-based online tech publication Digital Daily, Apple has now selected LG Display as a sole supplier of 1.52-inch panels for the iWatch...
Yesterday, I wondered on Twitter what was taking the repair magicians over at iFixit so long to do their ritual teardown of Apple's stealthily-released iPad mini with Retina display. My prayers have been listened to as iFixit has torn apart the device, revealing its guts and components for the whole world to see. As you could imagine, they found an Apple-designed A7 chip inside, slightly underclocked versus the iPad Air.
On top of that, there are usual suspects in terms of wireless and supporting chips. As for the titular update to this iPad mini - the Retina display - the teardown analysis has identified an LG Display-supplied 7.9-inch in-plane switching LCD with a 2,048-by-1,536 screen resolution.
While the resolution is the same as the iPad 3/4/Air, the images are crisper at 326 pixels per inch (264 ppi on the iPad Air)Â due to a shrunken form factor, as noted MacStories editor Federico Viticci noted in his hands-on article.
Other tidbits follow...
It looks like Apple's Retina iPad mini production problems are worse than we thought. According to a new report, both LG Display and Sharp are having so much trouble mass-producing the hi-res panels for the tablet that the company has been forced to turn to rival Samsung for help...
LG Display, a prominent Apple supplier that provides LCD panels for the iPad, MacBook and iMac devices, is apparently close to striking a deal to supply a portion of flexible OLED screens for Apple's rumored iWatch wearable device. Furthermore, Apple is understood to have discussed the possibility of a similar deal with its biggest supplier Samsung, but talks apparently fell apart.
In addition to LG Display, the rumor also mentions Taiwan's RiTDisplay as another possible iWatch screen supplier...
Run for years by the then op-chief Tim Cook, Apple's supply chain has become the stuff of the legend. Would-be watchers naively believe deciphering Apple's next move is as easy as keeping tabs on the chatter coming out of Asia's supply chain. Tim Cook, of course, begs to differ: on one of conference calls, Apple's boss cautioned investors against drawing conclusion from any one data point as the company's supply chain is a very complex beast.
So here's something for investors and fans to chew on: ET News reported Tuesday that Apple is considering tapping Samsung Display to produce low-power Retina screens for the upcoming second-generation iPad mini because AU Optronics (AUO) was unable to deliver. Samsung would presumably make the screens alongside LG Display, Sharp and perhaps Japan Display, according to a previous February 2013 report...
The inexact DigiTimes is reporting this morning that the next-generation iPad mini will feature a Retina display, and is expected to be introduced in October. The report is in direct contradiction to the publication's own scoop from earlier this week.
On Monday, the Taiwanese outlet added to speculation that Apple was delaying the launch of its Retina iPad mini until 2014 due to panel shortages. But apparently, LG has made significant progress with its production, and it's back on track for the fall...
DigiTimes, the-sometimes-reliable Taiwanese trade publication, on Monday ran a report which quotes sources with Taiwan's supply chain who claim that a fifth revision to Apple's full-size 9.7-inch iPad will be 25-33 percent lighter than its previous generation.
The fifth-generation iPad is believed to be entering trial production next month, meaning the device should be on track for a rumored September launch. Initial output is pegged at up to three million units until Apple and its manufacturing partners reach yield levels necessary to ramp up production...
NPD DisplaySearch is on a roll. After reporting yesterday that Apple could release two Retina-enabled iPad mini models - one in the second half of this year and another in the first quarter of 2014 with an updated processor, the display market researcher tell CNET today they think those high-resolution Retina panels for the second-generation iPad mini could go into mass-production soon, as early as June or July of this year.
If true, and assuming satisfactory yield rates, Apple should be able to ready its first Retina iPad mini for a Fall introduction, a time frame KGI Securities' well-informed analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently outlined based on his own sources...
An analyst report last Tuesday disappointed folks who were holding their breath for new iPads before this summer. As iDB told you, KGI Securities' rather accurate analyst Ming-Chi Kuo cited a number of "technical challenges" that Apple is currently facing in manufacturing the second-generation iPad mini and fifth-generation full-size iPad, leading him to believe that both products won't hit the market until Fall.
I've come across an accurate report which might explain that a fire which last week broke out in one of LG Display's subcontractor plants has forced Apple to frantically seek for alternative suppliers who could supply backlight units for iPads and MacBooks. All options are on table, including the display-making unit of Apple's frenemy Samsung...